Duran sent Fox two letters, forwarded to the Weekly (below), asking it to "please correct the record immediately."

The press secretary also has a problem with Fox's ...

... misleading claims about Proposition 30. Specifically, the story says that "families making over $250,000" will have their income taxes increased. But for families that file jointly, there would be no tax increase unless they made $500,000.

For the record, the deficit is estimated to be about $1.9 billion which, the Sacramento Bee notes, is "significantly smaller than in recent years" thanks to some economic recovery and the Proposition 30 tax increase.

Fox is notorious for being hard on Democrats like Jerry Brown (the Schwarzenegger years saw gargantuan deficits, though he often blamed a do-nothing Democratic state legislature). Perhaps it's just as noteworthy for getting things wrong.

First, the story states that California has a $28 billion deficit. This is completely false and is already being mocked by California reporters on Twitter. Please correct the record immediately.

The story also makes misleading claims about Proposition 30. Specifically, the story says that "families making over $250,000" will have their income taxes increased. But for families that file jointly, there would be no tax increase unless they made $500,000.

In general, the article simply rehashes arguments from obscure columnists whose opinions are contradicted by all available data. But these two major errors merit immediate correction.

Please correct the record.

Gil Duran

Press Secretary

Office of the Governor

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Dear Fox News,

I am following up on the message I sent earlier this week. This story contains an absolute falsehood. It contains a claim that is refuted by all existing evidence. In fact, this error was brought to my attention by a journalist who read the story and was shocked by the inaccuracy. I have made a good faith attempt to have the record corrected via the means provided on your website. However, this seems insufficient.

For more than five days now, this completely inaccurate piece has been on your website. It was featured on the Drudge Report and was the top trending story on your site. And it contains a major error. It is unethical to refuse to make a necessary correction. Please correct the record.

g

[Update at 11:55 a.m. Friday]: Wow. Fox actually issued an "editor's note" saying that it "misstated" California's latest deficit projections. The story's $28 billion number has been amended to the $1.9 billion we noted. It also fixes its claim that "families" with $250,000 annual incomes would be hit with tax increases. The story now says "individuals."

Dennis Romero has worked on staff at several magazines and newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Los Angeles Times, where he participated in Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the L.A. riots. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone online, the Guardian, and, as a
young stringer, the New York Times.